


The View From the Top

by laptoprabbit



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2019-09-29 16:41:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17207078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laptoprabbit/pseuds/laptoprabbit
Summary: Some people don't like that Kanto's strongest trainer has holed up himself up on Mt. Silver. But it's not like they can do much about it.





	The View From the Top

_"By expanding pokémon training to a massively wider population, the mass-produced pokéball saw the appearance of ever-more dangerous trained pokémon, partly because there was a greater sample size from which to draw, partly because of new methodology and infrastructure, such as the standardized Gym Challenge Level and the Pokemon Center network. The regional Leagues tempered this problem by tying increasing amounts of government loyalty with higher GCL levels._

_In 1990, however, trained pokémon began to appear with similar catastrophic potential to wild legendary pokémon. Across several regions, these handlers of these pokémon warranted national security designations (often a color), allowing arbitrary military force to be used against them should they to lose control._

_In_ Enemies of State: Military Ethics for the Training Age _, Professor Arthur Bendixen argued that these designations antagonized such trainers and are counterproductive in the long term; however, considering_

  * _The Ditto known as “Ditty” has emulated several Lugia-class legendaries to varying degrees of power_
  * _The Golduck known as “Dol” has demonstrated arbitrary control over any sentient, non-resistant being within 300 meters_
  * _the Pikachu known as “The Little God of Thunder”_



_Bendixen and other most other scholars concede that some sort of extra-legal protocol is necessary."_

_Professor Hazel, The World since 1942_

 

“Yeah, nice plan. Tell you what, if the Dragon Corps get within five hundred meters of Mt. Silver, I’ll shove an Electrode up my asshole.”

General Corvo was an honest man. He’d worked his way up from the bottom, with comparatively minimal nepotism. Nonetheless he respected the other officers sitting in the Situation Room. You don’t get to be a high-ranking officer of the Kanto-Johto Joint Defense Force if you weren’t a damned good soldier, or trainer, or both.

Corvo didn’t quite understand why this loud-mouthed juvenile was in the room with them. It was on Lieutenant Surge’s request, and Surge had a long history of knowing what he was doing. Still, Corvo was just about ready to leap across the table and strangle the kid. He was not contributing useful ideas. He was interrupting their planning in profane ways and consuming all the refreshments.

“And if they manage to land, I’ll tell the Electrode to self-destruct. Right in my ass. How ‘bout that? I solemnly swear on Ho-Oh and my first-born child.”

“Tell us, then, as to why we cannot make an aerial approach,” another officer in the room gritted out between clenched teeth. Lieutenant Adams, head of the KJJDF Dragon Corps. He sounded pissed and Corvo didn’t blame him. Kanto’s Dragon Corps ensured air superiority in the Unovan war, and every region hereafter has tried for their own Dragon Corps. Adams had two tours in Unova and three Amber Stars under his belt. Adams knew what he was talking about.

“It’s the same thing I’ve been fucking telling you for the past twenty minutes. You can’t bring the kind of numbers you want to bring without immediately flagging yourselves as hostile. Team Rocket strike teams have tried to assassinate him for years. If he sees a big swarm flying toward Mt. Silver, he’s not going to let you get close. He’ll light you up with Hyper Beams, Thunders, and the like. Those kinds of attacks are too unwieldy for arena battles, where the Pokemon start a hundred meters away from each other, but if you’re trying to close a big distance he’ll have plenty of time to snipe everyone out of the air.”

“The flyers will have evasive maneuvers, as well as Light Screen, Reflect, and Barrier support,” Adams said. “If you think they can be sniped that easily from more than two hundred meters, you don’t know what you’re talking about. If they went down that easy, Unova’s monkey batteries would have hard countered the Dragon Corps, and each of those could throw hundreds of attacks a second.”

“Well, can your flyers tank hits like Lugia? We’re talking legendary-class firepower here. The long-cooldown ranged attacks from that team shouldn’t be blocked, even weakened by distance. A Thunder from the Little God of Thunder is not comparable to a bunch of Simisear Flamethrowers, however many.”

“You’ll have to evade well in advance, and approaching from a distance, you can’t get a good enough read on what vector his Aerodactyl’s mouth is pointing, say, until the Hyper Beam hits you.”

“I find that hard to believe –”

Corvo cut Adams off before the meeting could devolve any further.

“So teleportation is out because apparently his Espeon can project a scrambling field a mile in diameter, tunneling is out because his Snorlax is some kind of enormous Diglett, and flying is out because the dragons, of all things, will be sitting Psyducks in the air. What do you suggest we do then?”

“Ah ha! I’ve waiting for you to ask. If you don’t want to get anyone killed, here’s what you should do. Get one trainer, and only one. Carry six Pokemon, and only six. Climb up Mt. Silver, on foot. Challenge him to a single battle with no switches.”

Corvo rubbed his forehead. This was a military operation, not some kind of League challenge.

“His team is a powerhouse, but they only really shine when they’re fighting off waves of grunts or big fat god-Pokémon, because that’s when the whole team can be out. That’s when he simultaneously has underground control, weather control, terrain control, psychic targeting information, air superiority, healing, ranged superiority, melee superiority. He’s trained them to work as a unit, at the cost of slightly over-specializing the individuals.”

Corvo grimaced. Where was this kid pulling all these large-scale battles against grunts and legendaries from? Kanto-Johto had been at peace for years.

“Bullshit,” another officer said. “Even with a Psychic helping to coordinate, there’s no way a single trainer can control that many Pokémon. Yeah, I know he’s good, I’ve seen his triple battle tapes, but he’s also a mute. How would all six see his hand signals?”

“Whatever dude, they just do. As I was saying though, when it’s one-on-one, Green and Blue have both fought him to a draw before. Don’t treat him like a rogue military asset. Treat him like a trainer, and you might have a chance. His word is good. If you beat him in a clean fight, he’ll come down. Hell, he probably won’t mind if you use some Revives.”

Right, Corvo thought, because a rogue military asset’s word is his bond.

“We will take your advice into consideration. This meeting is over,” Corvo said. What a waste of time. He’d have to convene the officers again later today. Why had Surge wanted that civvie trainer here?

“Smell ya later, top brass,” Gold said, swinging his legs off the table, resting his pool cue on to his shoulder, and leaving the room, all in one smooth motion.

“Why the hell was that kid here,” Adams muttered. “Glad to see InfoSec is a joke now.”

Corvo met eyes with Surge, who had been sitting quietly the entire meeting. Surge was a veteran’s veteran, but maybe he’d finally gotten one too many shocks to the brain. It made Corvo sad to see younger officers like Adams losing respect for him.

“Because that kid fought a god and lived,” Surge finally rasped, in a voice ruined by electrical burns. “And if Red has truly gone rogue, we will have to do the same.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Quick Gen 2 short story while I'm grinding away at a Gen 3 chapfic.


End file.
